“Yes, it is very daunting,” said Andy Flower, RCB’s head coach, on the eve of the franchise’s game against KKR. “For KKR. I hope it is an El Clasico tomorrow night. That’ll be a brilliant way to start IPL 2025.” The defending champions were expected to win the opening encounter of the 2025 IPL, especially with KKR having Varun Chakaravarthy and Sunil Narine at their disposal. So, when Flower made that bold statement, a few eyebrows might have been raised in the press conference room.
As it happened, RCB conquered KKR’s home patch by thumping their fancied opponent. Somewhere, it tells us that there is a little more steel attached to the current RCB line-up. The assertion isn’t based on a solitary game either. Even last season, after a disastrous start, RCB won 6 out of their next 7 matches and qualified for the play-offs.
Returning to the KKR-RCB game, at one point of time, the home side seemed to be on the right track. At 109 for 2 in the 11th over, with Ajinkya Rahane oozing class, KKR would have eyed a score in excess of 200. Unfortunately, despite possessing a power-packed batting unit, all they could muster was a total of 174. RCB’s bowlers had just navigated a way out of a quagmire with some smart and nerveless bowling.
For starters, Krunal Pandya kept it simple by zooming the ball on the stumps and waiting for the batters to make mistakes. Meanwhile, Josh Hazlewood put on a clinical performance, blending hit-the-deck skills with nip, variations and control. Yash Dayal too showed some smarts in the slog overs by pulling the length back and using the left-arm angle and cutters to good effect.
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RCB also followed that up by some fearless batting, with Phil Salt and Virat Kohli pulverising the KKR attack. At the completion of 6 overs itself, RCB were 80 for no loss. Salt had also taken care of KKR’s main threat, Varun, by collecting three fours and a six in a single over. In fact, Salt might turn out to be a game-changer right through the season. He is just the kind of player who could take the game away from the opposition in the PowerPlay.
It was also just the kind of start that Rajat Patidar, the new skipper, would have hoped for. He might have bungled a bit at the toss by not remembering his impact-player options. But through the course of the first innings, he looked calm and collected. The idea to squeeze in an extra over of spin at the back end of KKR’s innings was one of the subtle moves which showed that he has the required tactical acumen. It has to be observed that under his leadership, Madhya Pradesh did reach the final of the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy.
The main question remains unanswered. Can RCB adorn their empty cabinet with the IPL trophy? Can Flower add one more trophy to his impressive coaching resume? On the back of just one game, it is not right to make a prediction. But there were enough positives to take from their seven-wicket win at Eden Gardens. For RCB and their legions of fans, hope always springs eternal.
Also Read: Phil Salt’s Searing Knock Powers RCB to a Statement Win Over KKR
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